Police confirm 5 dead in plane crash

All five people on board a plane which crashed Sunday have died, police have said. The Cessna Citation 500, which had just taken off from Biggin Hill airport in Kent, plunged into a house in Orpington. Number 5 Romney Close was virtually destroyed by the impact of the eight seater plane, but the occupants of the house, Edwin and Patricia Harman, are believed to have been away on holiday. Ian Todd from the Ambulance Service told Sky News that only two people were being treated at Princess Royal University Hospital in Orpington suffering from shock. A wide area around the crash site has been cordoned off by police and the London Fire Brigade are still tackling fires in the vicinity. The plane is said to have lost power and sent out a distress warning before crashing. Two pilots and three passengers were on board and it is believed the aircraft were heading to France. The identities of the occupants have not yet been released by authorities. The plane, identified by Sky News as having the registration of VP-BGE, was built in 1975 [BBC / Sky News / CNN]. Besides much coverage on Sky News there has also been significant activity on pilot’s forums [pprune.org].